Vandersteen's high end sub for perfectionists (1 Viewer)

[Chu Gai]

I'm sure it didn't come across the way I meant it Scott and I'm not bashing Vandersteen by any means. My first comment was it's a nice sub and further somewhere I said they're a reputable company. Now I haven't personally evaluated it because quite frankly I'm not in the market for a sub. Call it casual listening if you will. A lot of my other comments were made to raise general questions in people's minds about subs in general and to draw attention to things like 'it's musical'.

I agree with your comment that the evolvement of driver technology doesn't necessarily translate to sound better. That was one of the reasons I mentioned composite technology that might employ kevlar or graphite. It got a lot of press when it first came out but it didn't take long to find the various shortcomings. However good driver manufacturers learn and strive to minimize those shortcomings. I do think though that far more attention can be paid by designers of loudspeakers insofar as doing a more thorough job. Measurements aren't everything but to exlude them completely does the consumer no favors.

Quite so. It's part of the whole churning process in everything. It's a delicate balance for companies on one hand to make you feel secure in your purchace and then in a couple of years to have you doubting what you bought and searching for the next great step. I have a cynical outlook on statements like "new and improved". I tend to translate that into "it doesn't stink so much anymore".

I'm not questioning the technology so much as I think Vandersteen ought to shoot the person(s) responsible for putting together the words on their website. I know nothing about the excursion limits or distortion characteristics of the drivers. Generally speaking, smaller drivers tend to have lower excursion limits so one has to use more to achieve certain performance criteria. If I were considering the sub, I'd be looking for additonal information to see if it provides the semblance of what I 'think' my needs are. Then I'd take it out for a spin at home to see how it sounds and whether I ought to be looking at one or a pair of them.

No foul intended towards Vandersteen and their loyal owners. I agree that how it sounds is paramount. I would just need more information.

 

[Lewis Besze]

There is plenty who disagrees with him on the "time coherent design: he favors.

 

[Scott Pierson]

Chu,

No foul taken! And while I agree with the assessment that the website style "looks" a bit outdated, I think that Vandersteen has always "undersold" themselves. Whether it's on purpose or incompetence in their marketing department I don't know, but I suspect that mostly it's on purpose. Unlike some companies which probably spend more on advertising to sell a questionable product than they do on R&D to make that product better.

Lewis,

Whatever...:rolleyes

 

[Lewis Besze]

Indeed!

 

[Joe Casey]

Just curious. Are you referring to the way he implements time and phase coherence, or time and phase coherent speakers in general? BTW, I think ML's hybrid models are utterly incoherent through the crossover range, and all Polk speakers are just mass-fi. Clincher, though, is I've never heard either.

 

[Michael R Price]

Pardon my question: How is the V2W a time coherent speaker, if it's a PR system? I don't yet understand what makes it different from a regular 12" vented subwoofer.

 

[Lewis Besze]

It's not, it's a sub.Only full range speakers can be. Usually the midrange[if it's 3 way],and the tweeter is farther away from the listener.This usually achived by angled front baffle,like Thiel Or Vandersteen does it.[simplistically put it]

 

[MikeTz]

I've had a Vandersteen HT set-up for several years (2Ce, VCC-1, VSM surrounds, and 2W subwoofer). The system started out as a pair of 2Ces for music. They are very smooth and dynamic speakers and don't cost much ($1200 new in 1995). I wanted more accurate bass so I incorporated the 2W powered sub shortly after I bought the 2Ces. The sub is interesting. Vandersteen recommends inserting a filter that rolls off at 6dB per octave, beginning at 80Hz, in series with the amplifier input. The 2W sub has an inverse matched filter fed from the same amplifier outputs as the 2Ces. So the front speakers roll off at 80Hz by 6dB per octave and the sub kicks in at 80Hz and increases by 6dB per octave. The combination yields flat frequency response to roughly 20Hz.

The sound of the system is seamless from the bottom to the top of the audio frequency spectrum. A side benefit is that you can drive this "system" with a modestly powered amplifier and get distortion free music at high volume. The 2W powered sub produces tight distortion free bass.

I am now upgrading to the Vandersteen 3A signature and VCC-5 center channel. The upgrade will cost around $4k and is much better for SACD/DVD-A because of the VCC-5 frequency extension versus the VCC-1.

If Richard Vandersteen doesn't pass large advertising costs on to his customer base I'm OK with that. I like to audition speakers in the showroom with my music and DVDs, or in my home. Website advertising and slick brochures are interesting but don't affect my buying decision when it comes to speakers. I really enjoy the Vandersteen sound.

Anyway advertising is felt more by our pocketbooks than our ears.

The original post was about the Vandersteen 2W series subwoofers. I've been listening to one for several years and it's very good.

MT